


In the Neighborhood

by Causarius



Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: Derek is a Softie, Fluff, M/M, and his two weaknesses are wolfsbane and Stiles, pretty much pre-slash but lets be real
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-07-27
Updated: 2015-07-27
Packaged: 2018-04-11 14:28:30
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,407
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4438988
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Causarius/pseuds/Causarius
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Stiles needs Derek's help and Derek just wants to sleep.</p>
<p>This is my first ever completed fic, so all comments and critiques are welcome!<br/>For my friend Jazmin, who's awesome.</p>
<p>EDIT: Translated into <a href="https://ficbook.net/readfic/3445821">русский</a> by Risu-kii!</p>
            </blockquote>





	In the Neighborhood

It’s 11:30 at night and Derek is laying on the couch, eyes closed, trying to convince himself to move to his bed before he falls asleep. It’s been a long few nights and he needs a decent night of sleep, preferably somewhere that’s actually big enough for him. Then again, it’s been a long few nights and any sleep would be nice.

\--

It’s 11:39 at night and Derek’s phone wakes him up. He has a text from Stiles – _of course it was Stiles_ – and Derek’s reluctant to even open it.

**Stiles Stilinski** : heeeeeeey sourwolf

Derek doesn’t respond.

**Stiles Stilinski** : derek please

**Derek Hale** : What do you want?

**Stiles Stilinski** : I need a ride home please

**Stiles Stilinski** : I really really need one

**Stiles Stilinski** : you know I wouldn’t ask unless it was an emergency

Stiles has said a lot of stupid things to Derek, but he knows that Stiles is usually level-headed with emergencies.

**Derek Hale** : What’s going on?

**Stiles Stilinski** : scott has my jeep and I’m in the woods and don’t know where I am

**Derek Hale** : Are you being followed?

**Stiles Stilinski** : no I just went out for a walk and kinda got lost

Derek stares at his phone. He glares at Stiles’ name and hopes that Stiles can feel it from wherever he is.

**Stiles Stilinski** : ok so it’s not like an emergency emergency but I really am lost

**Stiles Stilinski** : nobody knows the woods like you do

**Stiles Stilinski** : please derek

**Stiles Stilinski** : it’s cold

Derek drops his phone back on the ground and closes his eyes. That idiot got himself lost in the woods, he can get himself out. Totally not Derek’s problem.

\--

It’s 11:52 at night and Derek is tired but can’t fall asleep. He expected that Stiles’ constant assault of ‘help me’ texts would be the thing that kept him awake, but that’s not it. In fact, Derek hasn’t gotten any new texts from Stiles. Normally Stiles will bother him about dumb things like a petulant child – the fact that he isn’t makes Derek a little worried.

Well, not worried. Something in the neighborhood of worried, maybe. But definitely not worried for Stiles. 

**Derek Hale** : Send me some pictures of where you are.

Almost instantly Derek gets three pictures of a bunch of trees. Most of them are unfamiliar, but he thinks he might know some of the markings in one picture. Not that it’d be too hard to find Stiles, since he hasn’t quite grown out of the teenage over-cologning habit.

**Stiles Stilinski** : thankyouthankyouthankyou!!!!

**Derek Hale** : Stay where you are.

Reluctantly, Derek stands up from the couch. As soon as he’s upright he regrets his decision to help. Derek would just walk to his bed if it wasn’t for the fact that Stiles might actually get himself in real danger. 

In a tired haze, Derek speeds to where he thinks Stiles is. It doesn’t take long to find Stiles, despite the lack of offending body spray. He wouldn’t be a good wolf, though, if he didn’t have the scent of all his friends memorized.  
Well, sort of friends. Forced friends.

“Derek! Oh my god I’m so happy to see you. I almost thought you wouldn’t come.” Stiles runs over to Derek and almost makes to hug him. Derek stiffens at the thought – it’s been a long time since anyone has hugged him. Not that he wants Stiles to hug him, nothing like that. He’s just not so good with contact.

But Stiles doesn’t hug him. Instead Stiles looks at Derek like he’s waiting for something, holding his shivering body. 

Right, he doesn’t know where Derek’s car is.

“This way. We’re about a quarter mile out.” Stiles nods and starts walking, keeping up with Derek despite the chill. 

Stiles is uncharacteristically quiet, which unnerves Derek. Derek is always the first person to maintain a long and peaceful silence, but Stiles not talking his ear off is just too strange. So Derek breaks the silence. 

“Why the hell did you get yourself lost in the woods in the middle of the night? Isn’t that something you usually do with Scott?”

“Yeah, but Scott had to go do something Allison-related. So I was all alone and my dad’s on duty so I just started thinking about stuff. And then I wanted to do something so I decided to get some fresh air. And then I got distracted I guess.” Everything came out in Stiles’ usual run-on fashion, but his heart rate spiked when he said he was thinking. Which was odd. He was sure he could get Stiles to talk about it if he pressed, but this didn’t seem like the time. And Derek didn’t want to play therapist or surrogate mama wolf tonight.

Besides, Derek knows what thinking about stuff means. If Stiles wanted to talk about it, he would have.

After a few minutes Stiles’ shivering becomes obnoxious. Derek shrugs off his jacket and shoves it at Stiles. Stiles just looks at Derek, like he doesn’t believe the offer.

“I’m not going to answer to the sheriff because you froze to death next to me. Take the jacket.” Stiles mutters a thanks as he slips it on. It’s almost comically big on him – even though Stiles is old enough to not have an awkward, lanky teenage body, he still does. Most times it doesn’t matter because his big mouth is more than enough to make up for the lack of muscles. Not now, though. Not when he’s so quiet.

They finally reach Derek’s car and climb inside. Derek turns the heat on high because Stiles still hasn’t stopped shivering, and Derek’s a little concerned.

Well, in the neighborhood of concerned.

After a few more minutes of silence, Stiles blurts out “So my dad thinks I’m spending the night at Scott’s.”

Derek looks ahead blankly, hoping Stiles won’t say what Derek thinks he’ll say.

“So he’d be kinda suspicious if I was home when he got home.”

Derek keeps looking forward.

“So can I-“

“Why can’t you tell him you came home early?”

“Because every time I’ve said that before something bad happens, so he’ll know I’m lying. And then he’ll ask questions and I’ll get in trouble for wandering around the woods.”

“Getting lost in the woods.”

“Whatever. Please? I’ll sleep on the couch and leave early. You don’t even have to make me breakfast.” Derek finally looks over and is faced with a very earnest, still shivering Stiles. He sighs and makes one more dumb decision. He supposes that this is the night for them, anyway.

“Fine. But if you wake me up I will rip your throat out.”

Derek glances at Stiles and sees that he’s smiling for the first time all night. And Derek is definitely not excited about it.

Not even in the neighborhood of excited. 

\--

They get to Derek’s house and Stiles immediately curls up on the couch. He’s still wearing Derek’s jacket, but Derek figures that can wait until morning. There are more pressing issues, like sleeping.

When he gets to his bedroom door, he hears a quiet “Goodnight.” Stiles looks asleep, even sounds asleep, but he’s probably still cold enough to mimic a sleeping heartbeat. Derek waits too long – Stiles is probably actually asleep by now – but he replies anyway before shutting his door for the night.

\--

It’s 2:36 at night when Derek hears his door open. He knows it’s Stiles, so he’s not alarmed. He is, however, very annoyed at being woken up.

Well, in the neighborhood of annoyed, maybe.

“I’m sorry, it’s just. It’s really cold. Please, Derek?” The way he says please wraps itself around Derek’s brain, kicking him into protection mode. He’ll deny it with his dying breath in the morning, but he pulls the covers back for Stiles. Stiles crawls in and lays close enough to Derek to steal his warmth, but not to touch him. Before they both fall back asleep, Derek hears a quiet, happy “Thank you.”

\--

It’s 10:19 in the morning when Derek wakes up, overheated and still tired. Someone stole all his blankets, the same someone who has a vice grip around Derek’s waist. He’s still too tired to really think about the situation, so he decides to go back to bed. He’ll deal with it in a few hours, when he can be properly pissed off. 

Well, in the neighborhood of pissed off. 

Right now, he’s just content.


End file.
